No more fillings: Gel regenerates teeth

June 29th, 2010 - 8:26 pm ICT by Aishwarya Bhatt  

teeth New York, Jun 29 (THAINDIAN NEWS) A new revolutionary technology could soon lead to dentists around the world getting rid of their drills. The technology uses a new peptide which when placed inside a tooth cavity, will cause new tooth cells to grow in a month. The new peptide would stop the practice of drilling deep into an infected tooth. Filling of cavities, which is usually painful will also be a thing of the past.

Nadia Benkirane-Jessel who is a scientist at the Institut National de la Sante et de la Recherche Medicale and who recently co-authored a paper said “It’s not like toothpaste,” which can prevent cavities. “Here we are really trying to control cavities (after they develop)” she added.

Drilling is an effective, safe and hugely popular technique used by dentists to fill millions of cavities across the world every year. Even when the tooth is made numb, the sound of the drill haunts the patients. Cavities cause pain and discomfort and it’s usually filled with bacteria and pus, which can cause infection as well.

The new peptide contains MSH, a hormone that stimulates melanocytes which effectively heals bones.

Floss, mouths wash and toothpaste would still be needed to prevent cavities from forming in the first place. Hom-Lay Wang who is a dentist at the University of Michigan said that treating cavities without drilling “would have its advantages”.

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